In the manufacture of large-scale integrated circuit devices, it is necessary to package the devices in a way which minimizes handling, and which minimizes potential damage to the devices, particularly to the leads. In addition, since most large-scale integrated circuit devices are fabricated from CMOS circuitry, the packaging is made of materials which substantially minimize or eliminate static electricity.
For customers requiring large numbers of identical devices, the integrated circuit devices frequently are packaged in elongated strips of sealed "pocket tape". Such pocket tape comprises a carrier tape made of a flexible plastic material, in which a series of adjacent pockets are formed. The pocket size is selected to accommodate correspondingly-sized integrated circuit packages, with one package being placed in each pocket. The pockets are arranged in tandem throughout the length of the carrier tape, which also typically includes perforated flanges along each edge of the tape for utilization in indexing machines where the devices subsequently are removed from the carrier tape.
At the manufacturer of the devices, the carrier tape is moved along; and the devices are inserted into it, and then a cover tape is releasably sealed to the carrier tape along the edges of the different pockets, to hold the devices in the pockets. After this is done, the sealed pocket tape is rolled up on reels for delivery.
On occasion, it is necessary to remove the integrated circuit devices from a sealed pocket tape and to re-package these devices in elongated tubes or other packages. In the past, when this was required, it was necessary to remove the cover tape by hand and to physically handle each of the integrated circuit devices, one at a time, to re-package them. This is a slow and labor intensive procedure, and subjects the fragile integrated circuit packages to possible damage to the leads on the packages.
It is desirable to build a detaping machine, which can quickly and effectively remove integrated circuit devices from a sealed pocket tape, and insert such devices into tubes or other packages without damaging the leads and without labor intensive efforts.